Mar. 29, 2007
Dryden Flight Research Center
P.O. Box 273
Edwards, California 93523
Phone 661/276-3449
Beth Hagenauer
NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
Phone: 661-276-7960
beth.hagenauer@dfrc.nasa.gov
RELEASE: 07-12
IKHANA UAV GIVES NASA NEW SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CAPABILITIES
The inventory of research aircraft at NASA's Dryden Flight Research
Center has grown by one with the acquisition of a Predator B unmanned
aircraft system adapted for civilian missions. Built by General
Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) of San Diego, NASA took
possession of the new aircraft last November, and it is due to arrive
at the NASA center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., this spring.
The aircraft has been named "Ikhana" (ee-kah-nah), a Native American
word from the Choctaw Nation meaning intelligent, conscious or aware.
"The name perfectly matches the goals we have for the aircraft," said
Brent Cobleigh, NASA Dryden's project manager for Ikhana. "They
include collecting data that allow scientists to better understand
and model our environmental conditions and climate, increasing the
intelligence of unmanned aircraft to perform advanced missions, and
demonstrating technologies that enable new manned and unmanned
aircraft capabilities."
The aircraft, designed for long-endurance and high-altitude flight,
will be used for multiple roles. NASA's Suborbital Science Program
within the Science Mission Directorate will be Ikhana's primary
customer, using the vehicle for Earth science studies. A variety of
atmospheric and remote sensing instruments, including duplicates of
those sensors on orbiting satellites, can be installed to collect
data for up to 30 hours. The Suborbital Science Program uses manned
and unmanned aircraft to collect data within the Earth's atmosphere,
complimenting measurements of the same phenomenon taken from space
and those taken on the Earth's surface.
"The need to collect data over day-night time cycles and over long
distances in remote areas drives the need for a long-duration
unmanned aircraft," said Cobleigh. "Piloted aircraft are limited by
crew duty requirements that generally restrict science flights to 10
hours or less. Unmanned aircraft are also more suitable for remote
missions spanning open oceans or the polar regions where the lack of
nearby emergency landing locations increases the risk for piloted
missions."
NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate will also use the
aircraft for advanced aircraft systems research and technology
development. Initial experiments will look into the use of fiber
optics for wing shape sensing and control and structural loads
measurements.
NASA and the United States Forest Service are working closely with the
Federal Aviation Administration to receive a Certificate of
Authorization (COA) to operate Ikhana with a multi-spectral wildfire
sensor over remote areas of the western United States during the
summer of 2007.
"The FAA has been very cooperative in helping to define ways to
achieve our mission objectives while protecting the safety of the
national airspace system," said Greg Buoni, lead operations engineer
for Ikhana. "Because unmanned aircraft currently have limited ability
to see and avoid other aircraft and, in some cases, have lower
reliability than a manned aircraft, unmanned flights within the
national airspace require a COA and are subject to significant
restrictions in their operation."
Initial flights of Ikhana are originating from GA-ASI's Gray Butte
facility, east of Palmdale, Calif. NASA pilots and maintenance
personnel are training to support flights of the aircraft from Dryden
in the spring.
NASA has also purchased a ground control station and satellite
communication system. The ground control station is in a mobile
trailer and, in addition to the pilot's "cockpit," includes computer
workstations for scientists and engineers. All the aircraft systems
are mobile, making Ikhana ideal for remote studies.
The aircraft has a wingspan of 66 feet and is 36 feet long. More than
400 pounds of sensors can be carried internally and over 2,000 pounds
in external wing pods. Ikhana is powered by a Honeywell TPE 331-10T
turbine engine and is capable of reaching altitudes well above 40,000
feet. This aircraft is the first production Predator B equipped with
an upgraded digital electronic engine controller (DEEC) developed by
Honeywell and GA-ASI that will make Ikhana five to 10 percent more
fuel efficient.
PHOTO EDITORS: High-resolution photos to support this release are
available electronically on the NASA Dryden Web site at:
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/Ikhana/index.html.
TELEVISION EDITORS: B-roll video and edited interview sound bites
related to this release will air on NASA TV during the Video File
news feeds beginning at 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT March 29. For digital
downlink and Video File scheduling information for NASA TV's Media
Channel (Program 103) on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For more information about NASA Dryden Flight Research Center and its
research projects on the Web, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden.
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